Signet ring cell carcinoma of the gastrointestinal tract: National trends on treatment effects and prognostic outcomes

Gastroesophageal signet ring cell carcinoma morbidity and mortality: A retrospective review

BACKGROUND

Upper gastrointestinal (GI) signet ring cell carcinomas (SRCC) confer a poor prognosis. The benefit of operative intervention for this patient group is controversial in terms of overall survival.

AIM

To investigate factors relating to survival in patients with upper GI SRCC.

METHODS

A retrospective, tertiary, single-centre review of patients who were diagnosed with oesophageal, gastroesophageal junction and gastric SRCC was performed. The primary outcome was to compare mortality of patients who underwent operative management with those who had nonoperative management. Secondary outcomes included assessing the relationship between demographic and histopathological factors, and survival.

RESULTS

One hundred and thirty-one patients were included. The one-year survival for the operative group was 81% and for the nonoperative group was 19.1%. The five-year survival in the operative group was 28.6% vs 1.5% in the nonoperative group. The difference in overall survival between groups was statistically significant (HR 0.19, 95%CI (0.13-0.30), P < 0.001). There was no difference in survival when adjusting for age, smoking status or gender. On multivariate analysis, patients who underwent surgical management, those with a lower stage of disease, and those with a lower Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) had significantly improved survival.

CONCLUSION

Well-selected patients with upper GI SRCC appear to have reasonable medium-term survival following surgery. Offering surgery to a carefully selected patient group may improve the outcome for this disease.

Impact of Alcian blue and periodic acid Schiff expression on the prognosis of gastric signet ring cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND

The Alcian blue (AB) and periodic acid Schiff (PAS) stains are representative mucus markers in gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC). They are low-cost special staining methods used to detect acidic mucus and neutral mucus, respectively. However, the clinical importance of the special combined AB and PAS stain is unclear.

AIM

To investigate AB expression, PAS expression and the AB-to-PAS (A/P) ratio in gastric SRCC patients and to assess patient prognosis.

METHODS

Paraffin-embedded sections from 83 patients with gastric SRCC were stained with AB and PAS, and signet ring cell positivity was assessed quantitatively. Immunohistochemical staining for Ki67, protein 53 (P53) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) was performed simultaneously. The cancer-specific survival (CSS) rate was estimated via Kaplan-Meier analysis. Cox proportional hazards models were used for univariate and multivariate survival analyses.

RESULTS

Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that the 3-year CSS rate was significantly greater in the high-PAS-expression subgroup than in the low-PAS-expression subgroup (P < 0.001). The 3-year CSS rate in the A/P ≤ 0.5 group was significantly greater than that in the A/P > 0.5 group (P = 0.042). Univariate Cox regression analysis revealed that the factors affecting prognosis included tumor diameter, lymph node metastasis, vessel carcinoma embolus, tumor stage, the A/P ratio and the expression of Ki67, P53 and the PAS. Cox multivariate regression analysis confirmed that low PAS expression [hazard ratio (HR) = 3.809, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.563-9.283, P = 0.003] and large tumor diameter (HR = 2.761, 95%CI: 1.086-7.020, P = 0.033) were independent risk factors for poor prognosis.

CONCLUSION

A/P > 0.5 is potentially a risk factor for prognosis, and low PAS expression is an independent risk factor in the prognosis of gastric SRCC. PAS expression and the A/P ratio could help in predicting the clinical prognosis of patients with SRCC.

Clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic factors of elderly small intestine adenocarcinoma using propensity score matching analysis: a study based on SEER database

BACKGROUND

Small intestine adenocarcinoma (SIA) is a scant disease that has no adequate clinical trials, so its prognostic factors are still unclear, especially in elderly patients. In this article, we aimed to explore the clinicopathology presentation, treatments, outcomes, and predictors of small intestine adenocarcinoma patients aged 65 years or older.

METHODS

We retrieved clinicopathology data of small intestine adenocarcinoma patients diagnosed between 2004 and 2015 from the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. We clarified patients into two groups: the surgery and the non-surgery group and conducted propensity score matching (PSM) to compare survival outcoming. We identified the prognostic indicators for cancer-specific survival (CSS) and overall survival (OS) by the Cox proportional hazards model.

RESULTS

In total, 1018 eligible cases were enrolled, with a median survival of 16 months; the 3-year OS and CSS rates were 36% and 41.7%, and the 5-year OS and CSS rates were 26.5% and 33.3%. Multivariate analyses revealed that age, grade, tumor stage, surgery, and chemotherapy were independent prognostic factors for OS, while grade, tumor stage, surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy were independent factors for CSS. After PSM, only surgery and tumor stage (AJCC 6th) were independent prognostic factors for OS and CSS.

CONCLUSION

Surgery could bring benefit to survival for elderly SIA patients, and the early stage of the disease was another significant prognostic factor.

Assessment of Treatment Response after Pressurized Intra-Peritoneal Aerosol Chemotherapy (PIPAC) for Appendiceal Peritoneal Metastases

Background The aim of this study was to analyse survival and surrogates for oncological response after PIPAC for appendiceal tumours. Methods This retrospective cohort study included consecutive patients with appendiceal peritoneal metastases (PM) treated in experienced PIPAC centers. Primary outcome measure was overall survival (OS) from the date of diagnosis of PM and from the start of PIPAC. Predefined secondary outcome included radiological response (RECIST criteria), repeat laparoscopy and peritoneal cancer index (PCI), histological response assessed by the Peritoneal regression grading system (PRGS) and clinical response. Results Final analysis included 77 consecutive patients (208 PIPAC procedures) from 15 centres. Median OS was 30 months (23.00-46.00) from time of diagnosis and 19 months (13.00-28.00) from start of PIPAC. 35/77 patients (45%) had ≥3 procedures (pp: per protocol). Objective response at PIPAC3 was as follows: RECIST: complete response 4 (11.4%), 11 (31.4%) partial/stable; mean PRGS at PIPAC3: 1.8 ± 0.9. Median PCI: 21 (IQR 18-27) vs. 22 (IQR 17-28) at baseline (p = 0.59); 21 (60%) and 18 (51%) patients were symptomatic at baseline and PIPAC3, respectively (p = 0.873). Median OS in the pp cohort was 22.00 months (19.00-NA) from 1st PIPAC. Conclusion Patients with PM of appendiceal origin had objective treatment response after PIPAC and encouraging survival curves call for further prospective evaluation.